


Making The Best of The Absolute Worst

by FlaireandSpectacle



Category: Half-Life
Genre: Gen, Half-Life VR But the AI is Self-Aware
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-12
Updated: 2020-08-12
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:41:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,537
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25869838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlaireandSpectacle/pseuds/FlaireandSpectacle
Summary: Joshua spends some time with his friends after god knows how many hours of fiddling with the tricky computer and answering messages.
Relationships: No Romantic Relationship(s)
Kudos: 5





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey so this will make zero sense if you don't know anything about the Ask Joshua Freeman blog, but the main things to keep in mind are that Gordon Freeman has been missing since the resonance cascade, said cascade happened 13 years ago, Joshua, now 16, found his dad's old computer and is using it to communicate with anyone who'll answer (the askers) in hopes to find out what happened to his father. Check it out for better context, but I hope you enjoy either way

Joshua pinched the bridge of his nose slightly, eyes fixed on the screen. No further messages had come yet. No notes or new info from any of the connections had been written out. Maybe they hadn't come up with any yet, maybe they were awaiting an update from him. Regardless, the boy still sat in the dimly lit room, fussing about with what he called the "Hell Panel", but it was better known as the Administrator's Console according to its label. A tangled mess of broken coding and nonexistent vital files...

The sudden ringing of his phone startled him, with Joshua even fixing his posture before answering. "Hello?" 

The familiar, bubbly sound of Clera's voice responded. "Heeeeeya Joshieeee~!"

He couldn't help but smile. Simply hearing her seemed to push down any worries he had. "Hah, hey. What's up, ClerBear?"

"Gueeesss what I diiid!" She sang. Josh could just picture her swinging her legs in excitement.

"Oh, what?"

"Noooo! You gotta gueeess!"

He thought for a bit. "Hmm, did you get another date with Tiffany?"

"Pffft, nope! Well, yes, but this is more important than that!"

Joshua let out a whistle. "Damn, something's more important than love?"

"Yesss! I got all three of us tickets to go see a movie! Figured I couldn't let the two of you stay cooped up the one week we get free time, could I?"

"Oh, uh..." He took a glance at the monitor. "... I don't know if-"

"Oh, come oooon! It's the long awaited movie tie-in of one of my favourite shoooows!" 

"Galacta Bride?"

"YES! You watch it too, don't you? It's so gooood!"

He let out a soft chuckle. "Yeah yeah, about as good as a show about space pirates can be." The boy teased, spinning slowly in his seat as the conversation went on.

"OH. MY. GOD. It is about so much more than space pirates and you know that! I saw you cry when Lyra finally managed to be at Andromeda's side after fighting through the endless barrage of enemies sent by the Galactic Empire! Don't try to fool me!"

"Haha, you got me. Fine, fine, I'll come. I'll just have to get ready first."

"Perfect! The movie starts at four but we'll be spending time at the mall day! That's cool, though, right? Allen's driving, we'll be there in thirty minutes, don't forget to shower and wear something nice, byyyeee!" Clera rambled through the last part faster than a gun could fire, hanging up before Joshua could even consider protesting.

For a few moments, he sat there in shock, before quickly rising to his feet to begin the speedy task of rushing through his late-morning routine.

~~~~~~~~~~

It had taken him all of fifteen minutes to shower, with the rest of his time being wasted choosing just what he could wear. See, Clera wasn't exactly accepting of the whole "wear the same clothes forever until I die" shtick that Joshua had grown so fond of these past few years. Due to this, Josh had a closet full of outfits and clothes on a disparity of different styles, but no real clue on what fit with what. It happened all too often that they scheduled a hangout and Clera sent him back to change due to "retro not working with plaid" or something of the sort. It made having fun a bit of a gamble at the start, but otherwise great once he got through the first big section.

And so, one could suppose it was no surprise when he threw on a pair of blue jeans, a white shirt, and just about the plainest blue jacket he had. He debated on wasting some of his time to brush through his messy hair, but instead settled on wearing a beanie to cover up the whole disaster... He could only hope the whole thing fit together.

He travelled to the kitchen, writing a short note for his mother if she got home and he wasn't there, which he then placed above the stove, as all notes tended to go. After this, the familiar honking of an old trash-mobile led him out the door.

"Took you long enough." Allen joked. "Had to wait here all of twenty seconds for you to come out."

"Yeah yeah, cry me a river. At least I'm here now." Joshua retorted, opening up the passenger door of the station wagon and taking his seat. "Can't believe she dragged you into this too."  
Allen rolled his eyes and pulled out of the driveway.

"Joooshiiee! What are you weaaarinnng?" Clera questioned him from the backseat, pouting softly. 

"It's just a jacket. We're not going anywhere fancy."

"But you look so plain..." She fiddled with her hair, averting her eyes before rummaging through her bag.

"But it fits, doesn't it?"

"Mh..."

"... Hey, listen, I'll... we could head to get me some better accessories in one of the shops, would that be better?"

"... Aha!" And the smile returned as she pulled out a few little items, placing a pair of sunglasses on the boy's confused face. Then, as carefully as she could, she began tying a blue bandana around his neck. "There we go! Much better!"

He felt at the fabric at his throat, staring down at the white patterns it had. Then, he found himself trailing his fingers along the frames of the glasses. "... Hearts?" He pondered.

"Of course! I got 'em last week, figured you'd like 'em!"

Allen passed him a glance before focusing back on the road. "Pfft, can't even see your eyes with those on... How do ya see?"

"... I see nothing but pink and red..." Josh responded.

"So it's like Valentine's day all the time for you!" Clera giggled, zipping up her bag and sitting back in her seat. "Can't think of anything better!"

"Y-yeah... Heh, me neither..." A small smile crept along his lips as he took a look at the sunlit day beyond the window.  
Answers... could wait. At least for today. All that mattered now was having some fun with his friends.


	2. Arcade Games and Teddy Bear Fame

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trio has a bit of fun at the mall's arcade, and Josh asks a bit of an important question.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey so these chapters are probably gonna be very short but I still hope you guys enjoy. The whole story isn't meant to be that long either ways, just a bit of a fun time for Joshua.

"I don't see how this'll help." Joshua mumbled, taking a long sip of his sugary, vanilla milkshake as he watched Allen waste time and money on a claw machine.

"Gimme a break, okay? I usually rock at these, I swear!" He retorted, inserting another dollar in frustration.  
Josh took another look at the case, a large plush slipping out from between the metal claws.

"... Looks like you're really rocking it there. Come on, the trash they put in there is worth a tenth of what you're wasting on it! Let's play something else."

"I almost had it! You saw that!"

"Mhm, yep, totally..." He turned his gaze elsewhere, noticing Clera taking her time to play one of the block balancing, not-Tetris games. Aim of the game was stacking the most blocks you could without the whole thing tumbling down. Needless to say, she was amassing quite a bit of tickets for her troubles.

"... Still don't really get why you'd open with the movie rather than just telling me we were spending the day at the mall."

"Too long-winded, duh. Plus, just going to the mall ain't fun so you gotta present it in a fun way like Cler did."

"Oh, so you're not having fun?" Joshua smirked, earning the side-eye from Allen.

"... No. Not even a bit. I need the goddamn prize before I can be happy!"

Josh stifled a laugh, taking another long sip to avoid pressing the matter further. Al was determined, he could give him that. Stubborn as a mule too. He'd never admit defeat unless there was absolutely no way out of it and, seeing as he'd brought a small sack full of various coins and jangling cash, that may take an hour at the very least.

"... Hey, Al, I was wondering..."

The teen slammed a fist against the glass after losing yet another heavy plush. He then grit his teeth and turned away from the anger-inducing machine, focus solely on his friend. "Mh? What's up?" 

"Well, um... What-... L-let's say you, u-um... were looking, y'know, for s-something that's... important to you. What, uh, l-length would you go t-to if... you know, an opportunity opened up for you to get said thing b-back...? Hypothetically, of course, hahah..."

Allen looked Josh over, eyes narrowing in a quizzical manner. "... And this... is all a hypothetical scenario?"

"Y-yeah! Heh, just a "what if", you know?" He nervously stammered, fingers tugging the edges of his sweater.

"Well..." Al thought it over, lips pressed into a thin line. "... Don't think I could really do much else but go all the way if it's that important to me... Guess it depends what it is though. Like, if it's something like an old toy that I grew fond of, I wouldn't risk life and limb to get it back, you know?"

"Y-yeah yeah, of course not, heheh..."

"So, uh, why the question?"

"Just curious, noth-thing else!"

"Alright, alright, if you say so... Oh, by the way." The pale lad reached into the prize panel of the claw machine, retrieving a fan-shaped plush with an embroidered face sewn on it. "Here. You can have it."

Joshua's face contorted in confusion. "Wait, when the hell did you win that?"

"Just now. It's a bird of paradise, see? Like, with the wings out when it jumps and stuff. Think you'd like it, nerd." Allen grinned, placing it in the other boy's hand.

"Uh... thanks. I'll... I'll keep it on my bed when I get home, heh."

"Royal treatment, huh? Sweet. Now, are you gonna play anything or do you just wanna stand there, sipping your milkshake like a rich bitch?"

"I... I guess I could go for one of the racers."

"Hell yeah you could! Come on, I'll hold your things." 

"Ah, heh, sure thing." Josh smiled, following Allen to the racing sets as he paid the fan-shaped bird plush a glance.   
Had Allen still been playing it while they were talking? No... They were both watching each other, and he had just lost another game of it, so...?  
Maybe it... wasn't important. Allen didn't seem to make a big deal about it, so he shouldn't either, right?

... Why did he feel so uneasy?

~~~~~~~

"You better not drink any of it, you hear me, Allen?"

"Oh, chill it, would you? I don't want your sugary crap. Shit's probably sweet enough to put me in a coma."

Joshua took a sit in the arcade's equivalent of a race car's driver seat, rolling his eyes. "Tell that to the cotton candy I let you hold last time we were at the fair."

"Oh, cut me some slack! That ride was two minutes too long and you know it. Plus, waiting builds up an appetite."

"Well, try not to build up an appetite when I'm playing, got it?"

"Blah blah blah, just start the game already, would ya? Your vanilla trash will be safe with me, I promise."

He sighed in annoyance. Allen could be a real ass when he wanted to be, and now was no exception. It was never enough to just wish your friend to have some fun, was it? He just had to tack on a bit of "ooh, tasty! I might drink it while you're oh so busy!" which, regrettably, ended up actually occurring 6 times out of 10.

Regardless, it didn't matter now. He was mostly joking, Joshua knew. He sure as hell wouldn't give it back until J had a bit of fun here, that's just how he was. So, Josh had no choice but to put in his quarter and start up the game. 

"Oh, by the way!" Allen started up, "I'll only be giving you your stuff back if you win first place!"

"Fucking-! Allen! No!"

"Eyes on the screen, nerd! The race's started!"

"Shit!" He cursed under his breath, foot on the set's accelerator as he began the high-speed race. There just had to be a clause when it came to Allen, didn't there? It could never be as simple as "play game, get drink back", could it?

The seat began to rumble and shift as Josh swerved and bumped into the obstacles, narrowly managing to avoid an instant game over from the precarious ledges that littered the area. Just his luck that the stage chosen happened to be one of the damn hardest in the game! If he didn't know any better, he'd think Allen duped him into this!

"They're passing you, Joshie!" Al chuckled out.

"I know! Shuddup!" He responded, earning even more laughter from the raven-haired boy.

He managed to get an ability, landing him as close to second as he could manage before it ran out. Then, he rammed his car into one of the others and shoved it off the stage, earning him third. Just a few more had to get out of the way, and he would be golden. He just had to manage before the lap ended...

With a deep breath and steady hands, Joshua avoided a sudden collapse of the track, axing out the two racers in front of him, placing him in first as the finish line came into view, then-

Well, then the screen went black and the chair went deathly still. 

"Wh... what the hell?" Josh stared at the set in disbelief, hands sore from how tight he gripped the wheel.

"Awh, damn. Looks like the thing's busted... Guess you can't win."

"No! Allen, don't you give me that!" He retorted, rushing to remove himself from the seat. "I was winning! I was winning before it broke!"

"Eeeh, can't reaaaally prove that~" He smirked with a soft laugh. "Maybe you would've lost just before you passed the finish line, we'll never know!"

Josh shot him a glare, crossing his arms in annoyance.

"Hah, oh come on, you know I'm joking, right? I'm just joshing you, J."

"It wasn't funny!"

"It was, lighten up!" Al returned the drink and plush to his buddy. "Ah, is that a little smile I see? Is sooommebody about to laugh?

J cracked a slight smile before forcing his face back to a frown. "You're the worst."

"Naaah, you think I'm funny, nerdboy!"

"Do not, I barely tolerate you."

"Oh, how ever do you manage being friends with me?"

Josh shrugged. "Took years off my life, I'm sure. Pfft, anyways... uh, I think we should get Clera and have some lunch... I didn't really eat breakfast."

Al paused, shocked. "Jesus, really? You've been on an empty stomach this whole time??"

"K-kinda? It's not that big of a deal!"

"Josh, you could've told us you were hungry, dammit! We've got more than enough to get food instead of just a milkshake!"

"I mean, we were already going to the mall anyways, I figured-" Allen's warm hand on his arm cut him off, with Josh's cheeks heating up as he looked him in the eye.

"... Come on, let's get Clera and I'll fetch you your favorite, alright? No protesting, you gotta get some food in you, got it?" He sternly commented, earning a bashful nod from the boy opposite to him. Allen then led him away from the game, for them to hopefully quell his empty stomach.


End file.
